Student Question

What was Brian wearing in Hatchet?

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In the survival story, Hatchet, Brian is described as wearing tennis shoes, socks, jeans, underwear, a T-shirt, and a torn windbreaker. Despite the basic nature of his attire, Brian manages to use his clothing, along with a crucial hatchet, to survive in the wilderness. The hatchet proves invaluable for creating fire, sharpening weapons, and accessing resources from a crashed plane.

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You might like to look at Chapter Five of this excellent survival story in which Brian remembers some advice that an English teacher gave him concerning staying positive and remaining on top of situations. Trying to do this, Brian lists the items that he has been left with and uses this as a starting place to think of how he is going to survive this experience. Note how he lists his items of clothing:

He had on a pair of good tennis shoes, now almost dry. And socks. And jeans and underwear and a thin leather belt and a T-shirt with a windbreaker so torn it hung on him in tatters.

Thus we can see how little Brian has as he begins his wilderness experience. He has but basic clothing, and a windbreaker that is almost useless in terms of protecting him from the elements. However, if you read on...

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in this chapter, you can see how he sees that he actually has more than this and is able to use what he has to hack out some kind of precarious means of existence for himself.

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In Hatchet, what items does Brian have, including his clothes?

One of the most important objects is the hatchet; not only is it the title of the work, it is vital for Brian's survival.

The hatchet helps to generate fire when Brian throws it against the wall.  It also allows him to sharpen weapons such as spears for fish and helps Brian enter the plane and retrieve the survival pack.  Brian is able to use the hatchet to help create an entry to his cave dwelling and a bow and arrow to kill the fool bird as a food source.  

Another item is Brian's windbreaker, which becomes a shelter of sorts for him as its fabric used in different capacities to enhance his survival.  

Fire is a possession that Brian appropriates.  Fire is his "only friend" in the wild.  It also serves as a means of keeping the mosquitoes away, providing warmth, and cooking food.  Once he acquires the survival pack, he obtains a slew of belongings, such as a first- aid kit and a rifle.  Of these, the transmitter helps establish his whereabouts.  

There are not many possessions besides his clothes that Brian has in his time in the wild.  However, the possessions he does have bag are used by him to survive the conditions in which he finds himself.

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